Winning teams have averaged 24 points through the first three weeks of the NFL season, so it should be quite clear to the Oakland Raiders what they must do to beat the Texans on Sunday at Reliant Stadium.

Here's the formula: Throw 30 passes, kick a field goal, and deny the Texans their first taste of back-to-back victories. Sorry for letting the cat out of the bag, coach Capers.

The Texans have allowed a league-high eight touchdown passes, but even more disturbing is the fact opponents have attempted only 79 passes. In other words, roughly every 10th pass attempt results in a touchdown. Only Miami and Denver average fewer pass attempts against them, and the Dolphins and Broncos have surrendered only three touchdown passes between them.

"I wasn't aware of that stat," Texans defensive coordinator Vic Fangio said. "I don't need stats to tell me we haven't played good enough pass defense. I knew that already. We played well enough to win (last week at Kansas City), but we still need to improve on defense."

Improving their play in the secondary was one of the Texans' primary objectives this season. They drafted cornerback Dunta Robinson with the 10th overall pick and moved veteran cornerback Marcus Coleman to free safety.

Starting strong safety Eric Brown went down with a knee injury two weeks into the season, and rookie Glenn Earl has been forced into the starting lineup, giving the Texans new players at three of the four positions in the defensive backfield.

Not all bad

The fact the Texans rank 13th in the NFL in passing yards allowed per game is proof all has not been bad in the secondary. The Texans allowed 55 pass plays of 20 yards or more in 2003 but have done a much better job of denying big plays in the passing game so far this season.

After allowing six pass plays of 20 yards or more in the first two games, they allowed only two in last week's victory at Kansas City. The Texans even turned in a big play of their own on Coleman's 102-yard interception return for a touchdown. Nevertheless, with new players, there are going to be breakdowns, and with breakdowns there are going to be touchdowns.

"It's shocking to me," Robinson said of the frequency with which the Texans have allowed touchdown passes. "But we have a lot of games left, and we'll get it turned around. Any time you can come out of a game with a 102-yard interception, that takes away a lot of things that happened.

"We were able to make up for a lot with that one play. We just have to continue to build on it. I think we're coming together as a unit. There are a lot of new faces on this unit. Everyone is trying to figure each other out."

New faces

Earl is the newest face in the bunch, and he got a rude welcome to the NFL last week from Tony Gonzalez, Kansas City's Pro Bowl tight end, who was responsible for both of the Chiefs' big pass plays. Because it is uncertain when Brown will return, the Texans must count on Earl to grow up in a hurry, and he is getting plenty of help from veterans Aaron Glenn and Coleman.

"I'm going to continue to talk to Glenn Earl," Glenn said.

"He's a big, strong, fast guy, and I think he's going to be a good addition to this team. We know he has the talent. He just has to get the defense down and figure out what we're trying to do."

The Texans hope the improvement they showed last week at Kansas City is a step in the right direction. Only time will tell, but Glenn said good work on the practice field won't let him and his teammates down.

"Marcus got the pick in the game, and he's getting picks in practice," Glenn said. "I'm getting picks in practice; Jamie (Sharper) is making tackles for losses; Gary (Walker) is putting pressure on the quarterback. If you do it in practice, it will carry over into the games. I'm a firm believer in that."

carlton.thompson@chron.com

Texans Summary

Special honor

Kicker Kris Brown, whose 49-yard field goal with two seconds remaining helped the Texans beat the Chiefs, was named AFC special teams player of the week Wednesday.

Brown had three field goals — a 28-yarder and two from 49 yards — in the 24-21 victory at Arrowhead Stadium.

"We're just excited to have that first win," Brown said. "It's nice to be recognized across the league. I certainly didn't go out there and do it all by myself. Everybody was doing their job, and it made my job easier."

Free safety Marcus Coleman's 102-yard interception return for a touchdown — tying the second-longest in NFL history — has been nominated for the Levitra play of the week. Fans can vote at www.nfl.com/playoftheweek. The winner will be announced at 11 a.m. today.

Odds and ends

Running back Tony Hollings, who has missed the last two games with a bruised right knee, returned to practice Wednesday and split repetitions with third-string back Jonathan Wells. "I'm back to 100 percent again," Hollings said. "My knee is not giving me any trouble." Right guard Zach Wiegert (elbow) also returned. ... As expected, running back Domanick Davis did not practice while nursing a sprained right ankle. Coach Dom Capers said Davis' status would be a "day-to-day thing." Strong safety Eric Brown (knee) was the only other player not to practice.